NEW ORLEANS – The University of New Orleans women’s basketball team
will play 12 home games at Lakefront Arena and a total of 17 games in
the state of Louisiana during the upcoming 2012-13 campaign, it was
announced Wednesday

Head coach Keeshawn Carter and the Lady
Privateers will play their first three contests at home starting with a
date against Northwestern State on Nov. 9.

“We are truly
excited to be playing an NCAA Division I schedule this year and really
looking forward playing the in-state schools which represent six of our
first nine games,” said Carter. “It is good for the school and good to
renew some of the rivalries that we have lost the last couple of years.”

Other in-state schools during the opening stretch include Nicholls
(Nov. 13) and Southeastern Louisiana (Nov. 29) at home in addition to
road contests at SLU (Dec. 11) and Louisiana-Lafayette (Dec. 13).

The Lady Privateers will face Nicholls again on Nov. 23 as part of the
three-day, three-game Basketball Travelers Invitational hosted by Texas
Tech. As the calendar turns into December, the schedule is highlighted
by visits to Big East foe Seton Hall (Dec. 19) and I-10 rival LSU (Dec.
31).

“We look forward to closing out the calendar year with a
quality SEC opponent in LSU,” said Carter. “We have not played LSU in a
couple of years and this is good for the community.”

“Everyone
wanted to hear that we are playing opponents that they know and who in
the state is not familiar with the LSU Lady Tigers?”

January
features just four games, of which three are at home. Southern Miss
(Jan. 5) visits Lakefront Arena with Houston Baptist (Jan. 12) and
Texas-Pan American (Jan. 26) also on the docket for the month. The lone
road contest during the first month of 2013 occurs at Grambling (Jan.
26).

The schedule continues to lean home-heavy at the start of
February as Murray State (Feb. 6), Cal State-Bakersfield (Feb. 11) and
Utah Valley (Feb. 14) complete the 2012-13 home slate.

The Lady
Privateers finish their schedule with four straight on the road starting
with a trip to Texas-Arlington on Feb. 20 and the completion of
in-season home-and-homes against Northwestern State (Feb. 23), UTPA
(Feb. 27) and the season finale on Mar. 3 against CSUB.

“I look
forward to resuming the rivalries with Texas-Arlington and Texas-Pan
American,” said Carter. “We have not played UTPA since both of our
institutions were members of the Sun Belt and I was still playing.”

“The overall schedule features numerous quality opponents that will
prepare us as we move into conference play in 2013-14. It will be
exciting for the girls and we are looking forward to Nov. 9.”

The 2012-13 UNO women’s basketball feature three returnees from the
2011-12 season in Mirjam Sipos, Keri Thomas and Mechel’le Thomas. All
three players are seniors with Sipos beginning her fourth year on the
Lakefront.

SCHEDULE NOTES & HIGHLIGHTS •
UNO will serve as an NCAA Division I Independent in 2012-13 before
entering Southland Conference play in 2013-14. Future Southland rivals
on the slate include Houston Baptist, Nicholls State, Northwestern State
and Southeastern Louisiana.

• The Lady Privateers will
contest five doubleheaders in 2012-13 with the UNO men’s basketball
team. These dates include three in November with one apiece in January
and February. Adjustments to the original men's basketball schedule will
be announced at a later date.